Qi Refining Third Layer

"Fellow Daoist, wait a moment."

Chen Jianghe had just entered the port when someone called out to him.

It was a burly, dark-skinned, honest-looking middle-aged man, who waved mysteriously as he called to him.

A familiar face!

Chen Jianghe's memories involuntarily returned to seven years ago. It had happened to be the fish dormancy period, and he had come to the port to buy daily necessities when this very man had stopped him.

He had offered to introduce him to temporary work at the Lan Household as a short-term spirit farmer.

Fortunately, he had not gone. Otherwise, he would surely have become one of the hundred-plus fisher-farmers who had perished.

Chen Jianghe merely stopped, without approaching the middle-aged man. His gaze swept the surroundings, and sure enough, he spotted that thin young man behind a flagpole.

Back then, he had felt that the young man was a shill and that they were setting a trap for him.

It seemed they had another scheme today.

Unmoved, he stepped forward and continued on his way.

The middle-aged man hurried after him, coming within an arm's length behind Chen Jianghe, and whispered, "Fellow Daoist, would you like to leave the Yun Household? I have a way to get you safely to Qinghe Market."

"Fellow Daoist, have you been well these past seven years?"

Chen Jianghe offered a faint smile and greeted him in an even tone.

Hearing this, the middle-aged man studied Chen Jianghe's appearance more closely and could not help frowning.

He seemed to be searching his memories for this face.

Seeing that the middle-aged man seemed to have forgotten him, Chen Jianghe quickly walked away. There was no need to wait for him to remember.

The man had nearly led him into a death trap. Was he supposed to reminisce with him?

"Big Brother, what did that man say? Was he willing to go to Qinghe Market?" The thin young man hiding behind the flagpole jogged over.

Over the past seven years, this young man had gradually entered middle age as well, and quite a few wrinkles had appeared at the corners of his eyes.

"I remember now. He's the boy who refused to go work as a spirit farmer for the Lan Household back then."

The middle-aged man watched Chen Jianghe's retreating figure. "Seven years have passed, and he's still alive. What a cautious boy, content to remain ordinary."

Chen Jianghe had left a deep impression on the middle-aged man. But seven years had passed, and although his appearance had not changed, his bearing had. He had shed his immaturity and gained a measure of calm steadiness.

"That coward?!" The young man looked astonished. "So many upheavals, and he's still alive. He really is as timid as a mouse."

The Welcoming Inn.

A private room overlooking the street on the second floor.

It was Chen Jianghe's turn to pay for the drinks this year, so he had not delayed along the way, intending to arrive first.

But when he reached the private room, he discovered that Yu Daniu was already there and looked as though he had been waiting for quite some time.

"Daniu, you're here early."

Chen Jianghe walked over with a cheerful smile and sat beside Yu Daniu.

"I only just got here too," Yu Daniu said simply. "By the way, Brother Jianghe, did you run into any brokers at the port offering to send people to Qinghe Market?"

"I did. They said they had a safe route to Qinghe Market. I didn't believe them, and I don't want to leave either."

Chen Jianghe smiled. "Why? Did you run into them too?"

Yu Daniu nodded, his expression growing serious. "I found out that they aren't legitimate brokers at all. They're human traffickers. I heard they were the reason the Lan Household managed to recruit so many short-term spirit farmers back then."

"Daniu, tell Peiyao and Fairy Miaoyun about this later. Don't talk about it outside. Just keep your distance from them, and make absolutely sure not to make enemies of them."

These people did not act alone. There might have been an organization behind them; otherwise, the fisher-farmers would have settled accounts with them long ago.

As they spoke, Zhou Miaoyun and Gao Peiyao entered the private room.

Chen Jianghe gave Yu Daniu a look. Understanding, the latter told Zhou Miaoyun and Gao Peiyao about those people at the port who appeared to be brokers but were actually human traffickers.

"How despicable."

Gao Peiyao knitted her delicate brows and cursed through clenched teeth.

Zhou Miaoyun's expression barely changed upon hearing Yu Daniu's words, as though she had long known about the darkness involved. Only after the dishes and spirit wine were served did Yu Daniu notice the change in the aura of magical power emanating from Gao Peiyao.

"Little Sister Peiyao, you broke through!"

"Yes." Gao Peiyao nodded lightly.

"I'll probably need another four or five years." Envy colored Yu Daniu's words, but a trace of dejection flashed through his eyes.

Watching this, Chen Jianghe lowered his head and picked up some food without saying anything.

The moment Gao Peiyao and Zhou Miaoyun entered, he had sensed something different about Gao Peiyao.

Gao Peiyao had a four-element false spiritual root and the inheritance Old Gao had left her. There was nothing surprising about her reaching the qi refining third layer at seventeen.

Someone with a five-element mixed spiritual root constitution needed a year to expel the pill toxins carried by a Qi-Nourishing Pill. For someone with a four-element false spiritual root, the time required was probably shorter.

Perhaps Gao Peiyao had bought Qi-Nurturing Pills instead?

Chen Jianghe did not dwell on these things.

He was different from Yu Daniu. He had used the two spirit stones Gao Peiyao had given him to buy a Qi-Nourishing Pill.

That meant he had two more years' worth of cultivation than Yu Daniu.

Now, he could buy another Qi-Nourishing Pill, and after taking it, he would be able to break through to the qi refining third layer.

That would put him nearly four years' worth of cultivation ahead of Yu Daniu.

They had sampled five courses and drunk three rounds of wine.

They exchanged news they had each learned, as well as problems they had encountered in their cultivation.

As for news, since the others all stayed in their own Aquaculture Waters and did not dare to visit the port lightly, Yu Daniu did all the talking.

At this moment, Yu Daniu's value to the alliance was displayed to the fullest.

However, Chen Jianghe noticed that Zhou Miaoyun still looked at Yu Daniu with disdain.

Without any talent, merely gathering information was not enough to establish a lasting relationship of mutual benefit.

Once the Yun Household stabilized, none of them would need Yu Daniu to gather information anymore.

As for problems with cultivation...

It was essentially Chen Jianghe and the other two seeking Zhou Miaoyun's advice. After all, her cultivation was at the fourth level of qi refining.

An hour later, the small gathering ended.

Zhou Miaoyun and Gao Peiyao left together.

Chen Jianghe needed to go to the Cultivator Market to buy a Qi-Nourishing Pill, so he did not leave with Yu Daniu either.

He arrived at the Cultivator Market.

It was a bustling scene, perhaps because both Port No. 2 and Port No. 3 had suspended operations.

All the stallholders had moved to Port No. 1.

There were over a hundred stalls, and a stall selling magical artifacts had even appeared, attracting quite a few retainers and senior fisher-farmers.

Chen Jianghe approached the crowded magical artifact stall and stood on tiptoe to look from a distance. The prices marked on the wooden plaques beside the artifacts immediately robbed him of interest.

After browsing for a while, he lost interest in that too.

Three more pill stalls had appeared in the Cultivator Market. Chen Jianghe went straight to that woman's stall and bought a Qi-Nourishing Pill.

Returning to his fishing boat, he hung up a do-not-disturb sign.

Chen Jianghe sat cross-legged, opened the wooden box, took out the Qi-Nourishing Pill, and swallowed it. A rush of heat entered his belly, then transformed into countless warm currents that spread throughout his body.

He immediately circulated the Origin Returning True Water Art to absorb the dispersing medicinal power, refining it into magical power and raising his cultivation.

Three hours later.

"At last, the qi refining third layer."

Chen Jianghe slowly opened his eyes and exhaled a breath of turbid air.

(End of chapter)